Reborn
by ClockwerkOrange
Summary: Nicole is a Big Sister who has just had her eyes opened. With her new outlook, will she fall to her knees and die, or will she save those that now matter to her? I don't know, I'm just the author. Read and Review, thanks. Rated T for giant needles.
1. All Good Things

Deep within a particularly bleak hallway in Rapture, a thin abomination was launching an investigation. She was tracing the usual rounds of a Little Sister, finding her way through the blurry darkness with a single red light shining from her helmet. Suddenly, the black hallway ended and opened into a semi-lit room that looked like a workshop.

"Mister Bubbles..." a small voice whimpered.

The armored young lady saw a small Little Sister holding a makeshift doll in the image of a Bouncer model Big Daddy. She was crying underneath a workshop table. The Big Sister fluidly rushed over and crouched next to the table with her hand on the top for balance. She peeked underneath.

"What's the matter?" she asked blankly.

"Mister Bubbles got hurt..." the Little Sister replied, voice laced with misery. She pointed.

The Big Sister saw a Bouncer model Big Daddy, partially obscured by a few crates. He was dead, and there were a few Splicer bodies around him. One of them had a Little Sister's needle jammed in his chest. The Big Sister pieced the scene together in her mind. There weren't any vents around here, so she would have to lead her to one herself.

The little girl shrieked. "Big sister! Look out!"

She turned in time to see a Big Daddy's drill arm crash down on her helmet with a reverberating dull thud. Her vision blurred for a moment, and she reflexively kicked her attacker, an Alpha Series Big Daddy, into a pile of crates. He recovered, and fired a burst of ice at her. It hit her in the helmet, but didn't freeze her completely. The frost obscured her vision, and she realized that she had but a small window of time to react. She grabbed her helmet in a rush, unlocked the airtight clasps feverishly, and twisted the helmet slightly. There was a brief hiss as the pressure equalized, and then she threw the helmet off in time to see the Alpha Series grab her head and smash it down on the floor. There was a sudden white flash with the impact, and then her vision faded.

"Big sister?" a small voice asked. She felt her hand being tugged. "Why won't you move?"

She coughed, once, and leaned into an upright position. Everything looked blurry, and when she coughed, it seemed to sharpen for a split second. Her head hurt like hell. She looked to the right at her helmet. It had a large dent near the top, and the glass was cracked. She looked at the little girl.

...Her eyes weren't glowing anymore.

"Please, just call me Nicole," the Big Sister said quietly. She didn't know why, but the 'Big Sister,' 'Little Sister,' facade seemed a little... wrong. "What happened while I was... out?"

"That mean old man hit you, and you looked hurt... and I ran. He tried to grab me, and he almost got me, but he let go after a second. It was really bright," she said.

"What was bright?"

"When he tried to grab me, there was a bright light, and I didn't want to gather anymore. Is that bad?" she asked with a guilty expression.

Nicole paused. "I don't think so."

"Oh, and he touched you, too. On the neck. I think he was checking if your heart was okay," the little girl said, "Which was weird since he just hit you, the meanie... You were really bright, too!"

Nicole frowned.

_Me?_

"Just like you?" she asked.

"I guess so. What do you think that means?"

"I'm not sure... say, what was your name?"

"Maria, but you knew that, right?" she asked. "Anyway, when you glowed the mean old man looked real surprised like. I don't think he meant to make you glow, or whatever he did. Weird, huh?"

"Yeah. Weird," Nicole commented.

"Maria? Where are you?" a female voice called with a German accent.

"I'm here!" Maria called back.

Nicole stood quickly, and grabbed her injured helmet. She put it on quickly, and clasped it securely. She raised her left hand with the mounted needle. The glass wasn't that bad, and she could still see out of it.

A gaunt German woman walked into the room, but then gasped when she saw the Big Sister, weapon raised in the room. She took a small step back.

Maria walked closer to the woman and grabbed her hand. "This is my friend, Brigid!" she said.

Nicole's helmet light faded into blue, and she lowered her needle. Maria led the lady over.

"My name is Brigid Tenenbaum," she said cautiously. She extended her right hand, and Nicole cocked her head. She grabbed her hand and shook it. Tenenbaum frowned. "Do you remember me at all?"

Nicole shook her head.

"I see. From what this little one told me, you and her have been cured," she said. "The 'meanie' who gave you that dent was the one who did the light in which you speak. He is Delta, and he is a friend."

Nicole unfastened her helmet again, and sat it on the nearest table, revealing pitch black hair, snow white skin, and green eyes. She paused, waiting for Brigid to continue.

"I am Brigid Tenenbaum, and I was involved in creating the Little Sisters all those years ago," she said. "I also developed the plasmid that let you and her be cured, among many other little ones, but never a Big Sister," she added hastily.

Nicole smiled. Simply getting the helmet off would have been a battle to the death, under normal conditions. She wasn't surprised.

"Sofia Lamb has robbed you all of any future," she said with a sigh. "But, it is still traced to me."

"It's okay! Nicky can help!" Maria chimed in.

Nicole grimaced. _Nicky?_

"It seems as though you will be an asset in helping me rescue the other Little Sisters. Question being, do you want to?"

_As if I have a choice,_ she thought. _I'm aware, now. I'm not a sheep being told what to do, how to do it, and how to maintain the status quo. What other choice do I have?_

"Of course," Nicole replied.

_I've just had my eyes opened. It'd be a shame to be blinded again... but what am I, really? A freak? An anomaly? An abomination?_

_At the moment, there seems to be one answer: I'm here._


	2. I Hear Ya, Sister

"Nicole, I am sorry to have to say this of what you must do, but this is a dangerous task," Doctor Tenenbaum said through the radio. "If anyone found out that you have gone... what was it? Rogue. If you had gone rogue, then you would be in grave danger."

Nicole's helmet light glowed over a file folder. "I agreed to helping you. I'm doing it." She opened the folder, and flipped through the pages inside. Upon finding the correct page, she grabbed it, folded it, and tucked it away. She'd be needing that page very soon. "I have the blueprints," Nicole whispered.

"Very good, now, get out of there, there's no time to waste," Tenenbaum replied.

Suddenly, there was an earsplitting, scraping sound. Nicole paused, waiting for confirmation of an enemy presence. Her helmet light darted from the entrance of the office to the ocean past the window. She pulled a harpoon from a rack on her back and fitted it the harpoon gun mounted on her right hand. She frowned. She was a Big Sister, yes, but she wasn't able to shoot fire. Still, sometimes a harpoon could get the job done better. Her thoughts were interrupted by a lean, shadowy figure darting past at the end of the hallway. She heard a dull rushing sound.

"Nicole, what is that sound?" Tenenbaum asked.

Nicole vaguely recognized the sound, and it continued to increase in loudness. Her sudden, harsh realization was finally caused when a massive wall of water began crashing down the hallway. Nicole stood, dumbfounded.

"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh!" she screamed, raising her arms in the wake of the wave.

_Crash!_

The force of the wave slammed Nicole back against the office's back window, and she smashed through it with a low pitched shatter. She eventually lost the speed from the initial slam, and, after landing heavily on the sandy seafloor, ground to a stop. A startled fish swam up to her inert frame, and repeatedly bonked into her helmet out of angry self-defense.

"Nicole? Say something!" Tenenbaum called through the radio.

"Something," Nicole rasped out as she waved the furious fish away and strained herself into an upright position.

"I knew that I should have never asked you to do this," Tenenbaum said.

"We needed these blueprints to the bathysphere network so that I can steal one to ensure our escape when Mister Delta saves the Lamb girl," Nicole muttered as she half-swam, half-limped to a nearby airlock. The door went up, revealing a Big Sister complete with red, glowing helmet light. The Big Sister screeched.

"Um..."

The Big Sister kicked off of the other door of the airlock, spun around in mid-water, and kicked Nicole in the chest. Nicole stumbled backwards, and the Big Sister swung her ADAM needle at her. Nicole threw herself to the left, but the needle grazed her oxygen tank, and it began to emit a steady stream of bubbles. The other Big Sister paused, and looked down at Nicole. She lowered her weapon and walked to the airlock.

"W-w-wait!" Nicole coughed out. She staggered over to the airlock. The Big Sister looked at her, and pulled down the switch. The door slammed down.

"No!" Nicole shouted. She banged against the door with her fists. She was breathing faster now. Much faster. She hit the door again. "Open! P-p-please...!" Her fists unclenched, and she slowly drifted to the ground. She put her hand on the door. The inside of her helmet was hot, and there was a small amount of water at the bottom.

Suddenly, the door sprang open, revealing an Alpha series Big Daddy. He grabbed Nicole, placed her inside the airlock, and flipped the switch. As the water began to drain, Nicole saw a small E on his hand. Her heart exploded inside her chest, and the shockwaves made her brain momentarily pause and reassess the impossible data that her eyes had just sent.

"Father?" she choked out.

**Author's Note: Hey, neat. Another short chapter. Read and review. Geez, sometimes I think that Author's Notes spoil the drama a bit. Man, waffles are great.**


	3. Sibling Rivalry

Little Sister was skipping through one of the most brightly lit and decorated halls of Rapture. It had to be, really. It was so beautifully lit, it was lavishly furnished, and everyone around was dressed so nicely - they all looked so kind. There she went, skipping along, searching for... what was it?

"Angels, Mister B."

Of course! Angels. Now, the skipping was picking up again, and... Oh, my! She's slipped and bonked her head against the floor. How sad. How horrible. How unerringly horrific. When will this madness end? Who will step in and comfort this distraught girl?

"Mister B.!"

Of course! Mister B.

_Father._

"Okay..." there was a pause. "Subject... Epsilon. Yes. Very nice. We'll be-"

_Father._

"Come with us, girl."

"No... let me go! _Daddy!_"

"Damn it! Guys? Where are you go-"

_Father._

"Nicole? Nicole? Are you there?" an unfamiliar voice called. "Hello? Nicole!"

"What?" Nicole asked. She sat up. She was in a generically ruined and desolate room in Rapture, but... where was Father? It had to be him. She'd be dead if it wasn't real.

"I'm Augustus Sinclair. We haven't met yet, sport."

_Oh. The radio._

"I see," Nicole replied.

"I just wanted to tell you, thanks very much for securing those plans to the bathysphere network, and I think that they'll help a bunch."

"Thanks."

"Oops, better go. Train's filling up with water."

"What?"

The radio fizzled to static, and then turned off.

Nicole sighed, and then removed her helmet. A hand came to rest on her shoulder. She jumped up.

It was an Alpha series Big Daddy. He had an E on his hand. Epsilon. Father.

"Father? Father... how are you still alive?" Nicole asked, eyes swimming.

Epsilon looked at her through his diving helmet.

"Father... I missed you," Nicole said. She hugged Epsilon.

Epsilon reached into a small compartment of his suit, and took out a small doll made in the image of an Alpha series Big Daddy. Nicole took it.

"Wow, it's Mister B. Where did you find him?" Nicole asked brightly.

Epsilon shrugged.

"Nicole?" a familiar voice called.

Nicole put the doll away in her suit. "Doctor Tenenbaum! Come here!" Nicole called. "I have those blueprints!"

Tenenbaum walked through the murky darkness and reached their small lit area. Epsilon waved.

"Nicole, this is your... _father,_ yes?" Tenenbaum asked, sitting down on the bench with them.

Nicole nodded.

"Well, he has told me the story... Well, written it on paper. Apparently, he was diagnosed with a rare, treatable cancer, and, seeing as he was one of the first Protectors, his genetic code was written to the Rapture central network. The doctors were working on him for a while, and they were able to cure him. Of course, his genetic code remained within the network, and somehow there was a glitch that caused it to be associated with Vita-Chambers... and, here he is. I'm not sure why it took so long for him to be revived, however. I suppose the glitch happened recently. He wrote this while you were unconscious, and I just went to radio Sinclair."

Nicole smiled. "That's great."

There was a small beeping sound as a floating Security Bot flew down. Doctor Tenenbaum grabbed it and held it.

"Beep beep," the bot beeped.

"Nicole, this is Sinclair's bot. I'm going to need those plans," Tenenbaum said, still holding the protesting Bot still. Nicole put the sheet of paper inside the bot's box. Tenenbaum released it, and the bot flew away in a huff.

"About that Big Sister... why did she attack you?" Tenenbaum asked.

"I don't know. I'm not sure that anyone even knows that I'm not just a regular Big Sister," Nicole answered with a troubled expression. "It seems to be just that particular Big Sister that knows..."

There was a discordant shriek. Epsilon and Nicole stood up abruptly.

"Doctor, I think that you should get out of here," Nicole said quickly, putting on her helmet.

Tenenbaum nodded, and she hurried away in the opposite direction from the cry.

Epsilon stood firmly, wielding a rivet gun. Nicole aimed her wrist-mounted harpoon gun in the general direction of the scream at the end of the hallway. There was a crackling sound... but it was at their feet. The floor collapsed, and Nicole and Epsilon dropped to the ground one floor below. Nicole was the first to recover, and she saw that Epsilon was unconscious, or worse, seeing as he landed on a cement part of the floor, and Nicole landed on a pile of bags full of flour.

"You," a blank voice called, seemingly from every direction. There was silence. Nicole paused, and braced for an attack. There were slow, metallic footsteps, and a Big Sister - the same Big Sister that had almost drowned her, in fact - emerged from the darkness surrounding the small storage room. She hadn't noticed it before, but this girl's armor was dented and scratched in multiple places.

"What do you want?" Nicole asked quietly.

"What do I want?" the Big Sister repeated sarcastically. "I don't think anyone has ever asked that of me before. What _I _wanted. I'm a tool. I'm not supposed to _want._"

"Why did you attack me, earlier?"

"I have my reasons. Just be glad I didn't report that a Big Sister had gone... 'rogue', as _Mommy_ so eloquently put it."

"Tenenbaum?" Nicole asked. "How do you know what she said?" She shifted uneasily, and she thought she detected a hint of amusement from the other girl in response to her anxiety. "And why did you call her..."

"She made the Little Sisters, and, indirectly, the Big Sisters, so I can call her Mommy if I really want to. Oh, by the way," she paused theatrically, "She's in trouble, you know."

"You don't know that," Nicole muttered.

"Yes, I do. Next, I was the one who brought Epsilon back to life."

Nicole froze. "Why would _you_ do that?"

"Because he's _my _father," the Big Sister whispered. "And my name is Nicole."

Nicole's confusion caused her to pause. "No, he's my father and I'm Nicole."

The Big Sister sighed. She almost seemed... sad? "What's the serial number of your suit?"

Nicole cocked her head and recited, "LU201-34."

"No, it isn't. Check."

Nicole looked at a small, stamped indentation in her suit's arm metal. LU230-19?

"Now, look at mine," the Big Sister said, holding out her arm. Nicole cautiously approached. LU201-34.

"Th-that's my serial number. Why do you... have my s-serial number?" Nicole asked. The disbelief was being overcome by horror.

The Big Sister unclasped her helmet, and, after the hissing, took it off. She had pale skin, pitched black hair, and green eyes full of... pity?

_Those are MY eyes._

The Big Sister, eyes still showing the same expression, put her hands around Nicole's neck and unclasped _her_ helmet. The air hissed as the pressure equalized, and then she sat the helmet down. She whipped out a small mirror and held it in front of Nicole's face.

_Blonde hair... brown eyes...?_

"No," 'Nicole' said blankly.

"Yes."

"No...!"

"Look at the mirror."

"Fuck you!" 'Nicole' screeched, swiping the mirror away.

"Your name is Jasmine, and I am Nicole. I escaped from Rapture years ago with my mother. I was stolen away from her for experimentation. I was the last Little Sister to have an Alpha series Big Daddy. Rather than let Epsilon die, they reprogrammed him mentally to accept another Little Sister. You. And, in turn, you were programmed to be me. Yes, me in every sense of the word."

_Jasmine_ was about to faint from sheer shock and horror, but was interrupted by an announcement on the intercom.

"I am Doctor Sofia Lamb, and this is a message to each and every member of the Rapture Family - two Big Sisters have gone insane and are threatening our campaign against Delta. They must be stopped."

"Damn," Nicole muttered. "Listen, the only reason I was trying to kill you was because I thought you were going to kill father."

"Why would I do that?" Jasmine asked blankly.

Nicole paused. "You weren't a Big Sister anymore. You were 'cured'. I jumped to conclusions."

"Aren't you cured?"

Nicole paused again. "Sort of. My time outside of Rapture attributed to that, apparently."

The intercom screeched again. "In order to minimize damage, I am going to detach this building. All members of the Rapture Family, please evacuate."

There was a creaking sound.

"We... have to get out of here _now,"_ Nicole whispered.

There were more sounds, this time it was a dull ringing sound and more creaking.

"Too late," Jasmine commented.

Nicole grabbed her hand and yanked her along. Suddenly, the entire building changed position and they slid along the floor. Jasmine pointed at the hole that she had fallen through.

There was a quiet grunt, and they looked at Epsilon. He was awake.

"Come on, Father, hurry!" Jasmine shouted.

Epsilon cocked his head and looked from Nicole to Jasmine. He shrugged, and ran for the hole with them.

Suddenly, the building shifted again. Judging by the number of shifts, as well as their current position, they were falling by now. Water was beginning to fill up the building. All of a sudden, they weren't running on flat ground, they were falling up to where Jasmine had just fallen down a little while before.

"Nicole!" Tenenbaum called through Jasmine's radio.

"Don't call me Nicole. Call me Jasmine."

"Jasmine? That was another Little One... Oh. I see."

"The building's falling. What are we supposed to do?"

"'We?'"

"Quickly!"

"Okay, hurry to the top, er... bottom of the building. I have a bathysphere."

The radio switched off.

"Everyone, we need to get to the top. Tenenbaum has a bathysphere!" Jasmine yelled, pointing to some upside down staircases.

They scrambled up the bottoms of each stair and eventually made it to a large glass window.

"Everyone, get behind something and hang on," Nicole said, and then slashed the window with her ADAM needle. It began to crack, and she dove behind a wall.

Water surged powerfully into the room, and they leaped out. Nicole and Jasmine swam up, and Epsilon climbed up the side of the building. They were still falling.

A pillar of light shined down on them, and they looked up to see Tenenbaum's bathysphere shining down at them.

In the murky silence, Nicole gestured for Jasmine and Epsilon to make the jump. Epsilon made a water-slowed leap, and he grabbed onto the side railing of the bathysphere. He climbed to the top. Nicole made a quick bound up, and latched onto the side.

Jasmine stood on the base foundation of the building and looked up at the bathysphere. She jumped, and missed. Her hands slid pointlessly over its outer shell, and she began to drift downward. She tried to swim up, but her momentum was already carrying her down into the murky depths of an ocean ravine.

She saw Epsilon stand and point.

Epsilon? Father...? _No. _

Epsilon was bonded to both Jasmine _and _Nicole. Epsilon would blindly try to rescue her... and die in the process. Then, Nicole would be alone.

No.

Jasmine reached back to her oxygen tank and slashed it with her needle. Bubbles erupted from it for a few seconds, and then dissipated. She waved to the bathysphere. But, suddenly, she noticed the bathysphere coming to her at maximum speed. Her vision was blurring... and it certainly didn't help when the bathysphere crashed into her. She was pinned to the front, and she noticed that it slowly turned up to the surface.

_Splash._


	4. Sunshine

Jasmine suddenly awoke in a warm bed, all alone. She looked around. The ground seemed to move slightly. A boat?

"Hello?" she called. She walked out of the door and saw the great expanse of the ocean. The Sun burned red in the sky. It was a sunset, but Jasmine didn't know that. Not yet.

"Ah, Jasmine, you are awake," Tenenbaum greeted, putting her hands on the railing of the boat.

Jasmine put her hands on the railing as well, and asked, "Doctor, I'm sorry for almost committing suicide. I thought that Epsilon would jump."

"I understand. I am glad that you are... mostly unharmed. I was afraid that I broke your spine in the process of rescuing you."

"You mean the crazy bathysphere stunt, right?" Jasmine asked, which earned a chuckle from Tenenbaum. "Are Epsilon and Nicole...?"

"They are fine. Recuperating as you are. You were the most injured, and you weren't hurt much at all, surprisingly. There was plenty of water in your helmet."

Jasmine put her hand to her head, and realized that the helmet wasn't there. "And... and this boat?" she asked.

"A cruise ship happened to be crossing our paths, and we boarded it."

"A... cruise ship?" Jasmine asked uncertainly.

Tenenbaum chuckled. "It is a ship made for recreational trips with many guests. It's lucky, really. Food, shelter, all of it in one bundle."

"Weren't the other guests startled? Three people in diving suits with a bathysphere?"

"Yes, very much so, actually. One of them wanted to take a picture with Epsilon."

Jasmine laughed. "You know, maybe, after we reach... land, we could all have normal lives?"

"Normal? There's no such thing as 'normal'," Tenenbaum replied, waving away the thought.

"Yes, but, I mean..."

"I know what you mean, Jasmine. Yes. You will live on the surface. You will like it much better than Rapture, I'm sure."

"Thank you... Mother."

Tenenbaum looked at Jasmine. Jasmine saw a worn down woman, gaunt with shame and regret. Jasmine also saw her improve just slightly.

"It is fine, Jasmine."

"Hey! Hey! Wow! Nice outfit!" a man in a floral shirt said, running up to Jasmine. "Are you with the guy in the big old antique diving suit? Oh, and that other girl, too?"

"Um..." Jasmine said, cocking her head. "Sure."

"Neat, neat. Where can I get one of the suits that that guy has?"

"Uh..."

"Sorry, sir, we're all out," Tenenbaum said cheerily, guiding him down the wooden side of the ship.

"B-but..."

"We're out!" Tenenbaum repeated loudly.

Jasmine leaned on the railing again, and pondered about the Sun. Just as it was dipping below the horizon, she knew that it would rise again. She had heard about the Sun often, but she had never seen it in real life...

Jasmine watched the sunset.

**Author's Note: Okay, uh, great story. It's over now. Review.**


End file.
